The Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation is pleased to announce the 2026 Coolidge Idaho Workshop. This one-day event will be held on Saturday, October 24, 2026, at Novus Classical Academy in Boise, Idaho. The workshop provides students with an opportunity to learn about Coolidge Debate and helps prepare middle and high school students for future competitive tournaments through practice round debates.
Competitors are encouraged to create a Tabroom.com account prior to workshop sessions and to compete in future tournaments. A free account may be created through Tabroom.com.
Practice Debate Rounds Structure
All debaters will compete in two practice rounds. Competitors will be paired randomly for round one and paired high-low within brackets thereafter. This means beginning in round two, competitors will generally debate an opponent with the same win-loss record.
Debate Topic
The resolution for the workshop is “Resolved: Wealth taxes do more harm than good.”
The Coolidge Foundation has published a research brief on the resolution to provide competitors with background information, arguments, evidence, and sources to begin their preparation. Debaters may use the brief as a starting point and are encouraged to conduct additional research and develop their own cases and evidence.
Divisions
The practice debate rounds will have two divisions: Middle School and High School Novice.
- All students in grades 6-8 must enter the Middle School division. Only students in grades 6-8 may compete in this division, and Middle School competitors are not eligible to earn Coolidge Cup debate bids.
- High school students with no experience or minimal experience may elect to participate in the Novice division.
High school students with substantial debate experience are invited to attend to learn about Coolidge Debate, and may be permitted to judge practice rounds. Please email [email protected] with a short description of your experience to be considered for judging.
Format and Style
Students will compete in the Coolidge 1v1 debate format, the same format used at our national championship held each July in Vermont: the Coolidge Cup. Those new to Coolidge Debate are strongly encouraged to review our debate education resources, which explain the format, style, and rules.
Judges
Schools, clubs, and individual students are not required to provide judges, but we encourage them at a ratio of one judge for every two competitors or fraction thereof. Consistent with the mission of Coolidge Debate, participating judges should emphasize clear, logical, evidence-based arguments intended to persuade a broad civic audience. Parents, grandparents, adult family members, teachers, coaches, and other members of the community are welcome to serve. Experience is not necessary, but volunteers should become familiar with the Coolidge format and its emphasis on accessible and persuasive debate. We urge those interested in serving to review our information for judges. A brief training session will be held on the morning of the workshop to explain procedures and answer questions. With the rarest of exceptions, the Coolidge Foundation does not hire judges for pay.
All competitors are encouraged to create a Tabroom.com account, but it is not required for the workshop. A free account may be created through Tabroom.com.
All competitors, including students attending without the formal support of a school, homeschool entries, and school teams, should register using the form below. Coaches entering students as an official school team or club should register students individually below as well.
Modifications or cancellations for independent and homeschool registrations may be directed to [email protected] or [email protected].
Click to open the Independent & Homeschool Registration Form
Click to open the Independent & Homeschool Registration Form
All parents, community members, and coaches are encouraged to create a Tabroom.com account prior to the workshop, but it is not required. Accounts may be created on Tabroom.com.
Click to open the Judge Registration Form
Click to open the Judge Registration Form
Questions
For questions about the workshop, registration, or judging, contact Jonathan Peele, Coolidge Foundation Director of Speech and Debate.